Standing Alone
by Don't-call-me-eyebrows
Summary: Kiku Honda envies Arthur Kirkland, the most popular boy in school.  But after a surprise meeting, is everything as it seems?  Asakiku, High school AU.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi! This is the first chapter of "Standing Alone"**

**Um, this is my first Asakiku so please go easy on me... I'm a bit new to this fanfiction stuff ^^'**

**Anyway, I don't own Hetalia and I hope you enjoy~**

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><p>He had to do this. <em>Stand alone.<em>

Except for himself, no one was ever there. _Stand alone._

Lonely, though many people walked past. _Stand alone._

People just hurt him...no one really cared._ Stand alone._

All he could do was...

**Stand alone.**

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><p>Arthur raised the glass to his lips and took a sip of water. He was sitting amongst his friends at the lunch table.<p>

The English teen was an A and B student but also popular. He had many friends and always minded his own business. Only a few people didn't want to talk to him. His politeness and charm drew in quite a few people.

All in all, he was the most popular boy in school.

Arthur looked at the people who surrounded him at the table. This HAD to be the best place to be...

Kiku ate his lunch away from the crowd. It was too noisy and chaotic around for that. He ate quietly and took his time. Unlike Arthur, Kiku was not popular. Though he got straight A's, Kiku did not get half of the attention that Arthur got. He wondered what it was like...having everyone wanting to do something for you; having girls practically throw themselves at you; having people actually know you're name. Kiku thought for a second. No, his situation was not as bad as that boy from Canada's. What was his name again? Ma...Mu...Michael? Martin? MATTHEW! That was it! The only reason that Kiku knew his name at all was because he was best friends with Matthew's brother, Alfred.

Scratch that, he was ONLY friends with Matthew's brother, Alfred. He had a couple of acquaintances, but no "friends".

Alfred was loud and kind of obnoxious, but he was a good friend. He could be smarter if he actually listened in class instead of playing with his PSP (which the teachers seemed to never catch him playing). He was a likable person, though his annoying personality could get in the way of understanding him. He believed in aliens and things of the supernatural.

Kiku was thinking deeply when a voice interrupted his thought process.

"Hey, dude! You're still coming over to my house tomorrow, riiiiight?"

Kiku was startled by the sudden question, but after a couple of seconds he came back to his senses. "Oh, yes Alfred-kun. I'm still coming over," he replied to his hyper friend.

"That's great! And you're staying the night too? We can go alien hunting! We're sure to find some kind of alien! They're everywhere y'know and-" This is where Kiku began to tone out Alfred.

Soon enough, the bell rang, indicating the end of lunch. Kiku stood up and took his tray over to the trash can. As he walked with Alfred still babbling in his ear, he thought of how someone as cool as Arthur would never talk to someone like Kiku.

Once again, the obnoxious American broke into Kiku's thoughts. "Maaan...I've got music with Mr. Edelstein next...HES FREAKING SCARY DUDE... It's like he's bearing into my soul...and he really hates me for some odd reason. Anyway, I'll talk to you later ok? I don't wanna be late for my 'FAVORITE' class!" Alfred laughed in that annoying way of his and ran off towards his next class.

The Hetalia World Academy (or HWA) was a school for those of many countries to come and study. There were people from just about every country at this school. It was a school for the rich kids, maybe not so much richest of rich, but definitely rich. Kiku had gotten in through scholarship.

Kiku knew that he really didn't belong in that school...he was always the outcast in everything. From picking teams for dodgeball, to people not seeing him for his shortness, even as far as forgetting that Kiku was even in the classroom. The Japanese teen sighed. He supposed it was partially his fault...he was so shy and timid to speak to new people. When he'd try to make new friends, he'd blush terribly red and end up embarrassing himself by saying something stupid. Because of this, he just kept to himself and Alfred.

But in reality, Arthur Kirkland was his role model. The cool, British boy who could talk to everyone and keep his feelings a mystery the whole time. Arthur occasionally lost his temper but had generally the same attitude towards everyone. Sure, Kiku always had the same on too, but it just wasn't the same.

Kiku could only dream of being like Arthur...In all honesty, Kiku thought he had a...no he didn't want to think about it...

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><p>As he walked to his AP World History class, he took a deep breath. This was Kiku's only class with Arthur...it was his past-time to steal glances at Arthur when he finished his work. He calmly walked into the classroom and took his seat, pulled out his writing utensil, pulled out his book and binder and faced the board, ready to learn. He was always early, and today was no different. Everyone usually came in with...<p>

"Arthur? Can I sit next to you in history today?" Kiku heard outside in the hall.

Knowing the gestures of the Englishman, he probably just shrugged or said, "Yeah." judging by the way the girl had just squealed...

Arthur walked into the room with a small group of people following him. They were talking and laughing, Kiku observed. That must've been what it was like to have a bunch of friends...The Japanese teen had never known that feeling... The group continued to talk amongst themselves after they sat down. About two minutes later, the tardy bell rang. Kiku watched the door, waiting for the teacher, Mr. Smith, to walk in. Suddenly, he felt something hit the back of his head. He turned and figured it was just some bully picking on the shorter boy. Then he realized it was a wadded up note. 'Must've been thrown to the wrong person...' Kiku thought.

As he began to walk toward the recycling bin, (gotta keep the environment healthy!) he saw through the note that it had his name on it.

Kiku became curious and sat back down in his seat. Who threw this at him? He opened the note and looked up before reading it. (Where was Mr. Smith?) The note read:

"Kiku,

I need to talk to you after school. 3:10, on the rooftop.

-Arthur"

Kiku could feel his eyes become the size of saucers. Arthur? Wanted to see HIM? KIKU? Of all people...? Kiku was about to say something when the History teacher walked into the room. "Sorry I'm late! I got caught behind helping some kids. Anyway! Pull out your homework."

The teenagers all pulled out their homework. Luckily, Kiku already had his out because he was too shocked to do anything at the moment.

His heart was beating faster than it ever had before, and he was sure that something alive was in his stomach. The teacher was talking, but Kiku heard none of it. He reread the fourteen word letter over and over, just to make sure he wasn't dreaming. But then realization dawned on him. Why would Arthur EVER want to talk to Kiku? There was nothing interesting to talk about. Kiku looked at his fingers disappointedly. It was probably just some prank someone pulled to make fun of him. Arthur probably wouldn't be on the rooftop...

But maybe... there was a small chance he would be there...

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><p>The whole rest of history, Kiku couldn't stop thinking of Arthur saying the note in his crisp English accent. Arthur, Arthur, Arthur was all he could think. Pretty soon class was over and Kiku just about floated out of the room.<p>

The next two periods flew by. Pretty soon it was 3:13. (He had study hall) Kiku breathed deeply as he was about to begin a long ascent up the stairs. He was already late...Kiku hoped that Arthur didn't think he stood him up...

As he walked up the steps, he counted them. "1...2...3...7...15...19..." He stopped on the 20th step. He grasped the doorknob with his hand, about to turn it. Kiku could hear his heartbeat in his ears and felt as if he was about to explode. He sighed and whispered to himself, "You cam do it..."

He turned the knob, pushed the door, walked out and...

No one was up there.

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><p><strong>AN: Awww, poor Kiku... :( anyway...I don't think this chapter is very good XP but I've never really been good at first chapters...Anyway, please tell me what you think! Thanks for reading! Sorry it's so short. XP**

**P.S. Just think you should know, they're juniors in a high school in New York. I know it's a bit overused but I like the idea, y'know?**

**P.S.S. Whoever finds the "secret" hidden in the first part of this chapter gets a shout out next chapter. :D**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Well, here's chapter two... :) Sorry it took me a bit to update, school doesn't like me... :P**

**And the secret in the last chapter...well, you can find it yourself. But to those who already found it. GOOD JOB! They were HubbyPuppy, Hanashi Tokoma. Good job! :) You...you only win that shoutout...sorry, i don't have anything else to give :(((((...If you want an imaginary cookie i can give you that? XP ok, just ignore me now...**

**Anyway, on with the story!**

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><p>He...He wasn't there. Kiku felt all of the anticipation he had blow out of him and he felt a sudden sadness come upon him.<p>

Then he just felt stupid. Of course Arthur wasn't _really _going to meet Kiku up on the roof. It was just someone teasing the friendless kid... The Japanese teen almost wanted to cry...but he wouldn't because he was a growing proper Japanese man.

He looked out at the sky on the rooftop. It really was a wonderful view from up here. Hetalia World Academy was right on the edge of New York City. If you turned to one side, one could see all of the skyscrapers and the hustle and bustle below. But if you turned to the other side, you could see the blue sky and the sun. Kiku felt like he could stay there forever every time that he came up here.

The view wasn't going to make Kiku feel any better though. He took one last glance at the beautiful blue sky and fluffy clouds and turned around to open the door. As he reached for the door handle, Kiku heard footsteps running up the stairs. Suddenly, the door burst open and there stood Arthur Kirkland, sweaty and out of breath. Kiku didn't know how to react right then, but he could feel his emotionless face show a little bit of surprise.

Arthur said in between huffs, "Sorry that...I'm late...the teacher held me after...class ended...I ran to...to get here..."

Kiku was so surprised that Arthur had even showed up that all he said was, "No, it is fine, Kirkland-san."

Arthur slowly stood up straighter and caught his breath. "There is something that I wanted to ask of you, Kiku..." The Brit said politely. Kiku began to wonder once again what on earth Arthur could want to talk to him about. As the many bad scenarios ran through Kiku's mind, Arthur coughed awkwardly, breaking Kiku's train of thought. Arthur knitted his bushy eyebrows together and looked down at the ground.

"Uhm," the Brit began, "Well...this is going to sound stupid...but...You know what? Never mind. It doesn't matter."

Arthur began to turn around to leave the rooftop but Kiku stopped him first and said, "W-wait, Kirkland-san...Pl-please finish your...um...question..." Oh no...Kiku's shyness was starting to show...The Japanese teen could feel his cheeks starting to burn red and his head beginning to look down.

Arthur paused. "I said it doesn't matter. You can just go on..."

Kiku began to feel his voice box starting to "shut down", as he called it. But this time, Kiku was not going to give up. "Kirkland-san! If you called me up here, it must be important or it must matter somewhat, or you would not have done it!" Kiku looked square into the emerald eyes of Arthur, but quickly felt his bravery slip away and he looked at the ground once again.

Arthur sighed and said to Kiku, "Fine, I'll ask you, but please don't laugh at what I'm about to say." He took a deep breath and said, "Kiku...after school...can you sit with me...every day...you don't have to but...I'm..." Arthur stopped and began to blush... "I MEAN, it's not anything weird or anything! It's just..." Once again, he stopped mid sentence.

Kiku couldn't believe what he was hearing. This was a joke right? Why would Arthur want Kiku to sit with him? Didn't he have plenty of friends?

"Damn...I'm terrible with these kind of things...I'm sorry, disregard the last five minutes of your life please..."

Once again, the Brit turned to walk away, but this time Kiku piped up and said, "I'll come up here with you." In that overly calm way of his. Arthur turned around quickly, looking dumbfounded. "Really?" Arthur asked cautiously. Now was the time for Kiku to turn back if this was a joke. If this was some kind of trick he could just dismiss it and say that he had other priorities after school. But he didn't. And he wouldn't say that he did, because that was too cruel of him.

"Really." The Japanese teen affirmed.

Arthur didn't smile but muttered a small "Thank you." Arthur looked off at the view from the good side of the building and said, "Wow...this is amazing..."

Kiku also turned to look out into the seemingly endless blue sky. For the next three minutes, there was only silence. Not one word was said between the two teenagers, but at that moment, they weren't from two different worlds...A world where everyone knew you and a world where no one knew you.

For once, they were just in a _world_.

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><p>Arthur drove down the road toward the richer part of town. He walked past elegant mansions with huge gates with initials of families carved in them. It was hard to believe places like this even existed. Especially in a place like New York, when in movies, all you usually see is the apartments and such. Well, the mansions weren't IN New York, so to speak, but it was close enough.<p>

He pulled into the long driveway that led up to his house. Arthur killed the engine and stepped out of his brand new Aston Martin. He looked up at his giant white marble mansion and sighed. He turned around to see two kids looking into the gates. They looked a tad bit scruffy and disheveled. As soon as they saw him turn around to look at them, they gasped and ran off. Arthur chuckled a little to himself and quietly said, "If only they knew what goes on behind the golden gates..."

Arthur walked up to the door holding his house key. He put on the most non-caring face he could manage and braced himself for whatever hell stood behind that door.

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><p>Kiku hurried to his apartment building. Arthur hadn't kept him for long, but he still had to study for his AP biology test. (He'd been studying for the past week or so, and knew everything by heart, but one more two hour study session couldn't hurt, right?) Kiku's family was not extremely rich. His parents had stayed back home in Kyoto, while he and his brother ,Yao, had moved to America for this school. Kiku had gotten a scholarship, and Yao was just old enough to be his guardian and get good work, so why not move to America?<p>

Though they were not rich, they also were not poor. Kiku and Yao lived in a really nice apartment building that was more on the expensive side and they had many CEOs and hotshot lawyers surrounding them. Kiku entered the building and thought, 'If anything, this apartment building looks like a four and a half star hotel...'

Kiku rode the elevator up to the tenth floor, where he got off, walked seven doors down and arrived at his apartment. He quickly found his key and unlocked the door, letting himself in. As he walked in he was immediately greeted by his elder brother, who had something very "important" to show him.

His older brother, Yao, had dark brown, long hair (for a man), and deep brown eyes that didn't reflect much light because of their darkness. He sounds like he would be someone who was cool, calm, and collected. But he was quite the contrary...

"Kiku! Kiku!" The twenty year old man exclaimed like a five year old. His eyes glistened as he said, "Guess what I found today..." He said this trying to get Kiku as excited as he was.

"What is it Yao?" Kiku asked in a very bored voice.

The older of the two pouted and said, "Why aren't you as happy as I am? This is possibly the greatest thing ever, aru!"

"What is it...?" Kiku asked once again, trying to put a little bit of excitement to his voice, to no avail. Apparently, this was convincing enough for Yao, because he smiled very widely and said, "I have found...a limited edition...TEACHER HELLO KITTY!" He held it out to prove to Kiku that he had found it.

Kiku stared at him blankly and Yao continued smiling, holding out the child's toy. The younger sighed and shook his head. "Nii-chan...when are you going to grow up...If you will let me be excused, I have a test to study for..."

With that, Kiku walked down the hallway, his book bag in tote, towards his bedroom.

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><p>Yao felt a pain as Kiku said those words...<p>

'Nii-chan...when are you going to grow up..."

It hurt to hear his younger brother say those words to him. He sighed and placed Teacher Hello Kitty back in her box. Yao plopped down on one of the couches in the living room and looked up at the wall. There were three pictures up on this particular wall. The first was of Kiku's and Yao's whole family, out in front of their house, back in Japan. The second was of their grandparents. And the third one was of Kiku and Yao, sitting together on some steps. Yao was about nine here, and Kiku about seven. The younger Yao was grinning from ear to ear, his hair wasn't as long then and he looked so happy. Kiku, though he had never been someone who smiled a lot, looked like he was even trying to smile. He looked a lot happier then what he had been looking for the past ten years. Yao could see in the picture how close he and his brother were. How he missed that closeness. He almost started to cry, but he didn't, in fear that his brother would come back in and see him crying.

No matter far apart the brothers drifted, Yao had always promised for himself and Kiku one thing:

He'd always stay strong, and he'd never, _EVER_ cry in front of his brother.

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><p><strong>AN: Oh sigh, you probably hate me for cutting it off there... :P Next chapter should be out soon...sorry if the chapter was kinda lame...I totally started getting writer's block, and then I started getting all "NUUU THIS IS ALL WRONG!"-sy, soo...**

**Anyway, Hope you enjooyed! Review!**

**And yes, Yao is Kiku's brother. And Yao isn't adopted...hmm, expect a taaad bit of drama next chapter! anywho, **

**Have an awesome day...or night...or whenever you're reading this... :D**


	3. Chapter 3

**Story:Standing Alone**

**Chapter 3**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia, Hello Kitty, or any other name used in this story.**

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><p>Arthur quietly closed his bedroom door, trying to draw as little attention as possible to himself. Walking slowly, he came to his swivel chair and sat down, closing his eyes and leaning his head back, the pain slowly beginning to numb away.<p>

Why was everything like this?

The teen felt something warm and furry rub against the bottom of his leg. Feeling the presence, Arthur looked down and smiled. A young tortoiseshell cat looked up at him with yellow-green eyes and let out a small mew as if saying "Welcome back." The Briton picked up the cat and placed it in his lap.

"Hello, Patch. How was your day?" Arthur said referring to the cat by name. She perked her ears up as if she were listening.

She mewed once again, as if to say she understood what he said.

Arthur took her reaction as her day was fine. "Of course you're day was fine, you're a bloody cat..."

Absentmindedly stroking the feline, Arthur looked around at his room. The room was unusually bland for a teenager, not by his choice though. The walls were a dull off-white, and nothing hung on his wall but a medium-sized Union Jack. The closet was neat and orderly, and the bed was twin-sized with a royal blue comforter. The only other object in the small room was Arthur's desk which held a MacBook, a lamp, and a pencil holder. Without the three things on it, however, it was just a dark brown desk.

Patch readjusted herself in Arthur's lap, snapping him out of his trance.

It was finally Friday, and after a very long day of work and test-taking, the British teen just kind of wanted to relax.

This room was Arthur's only safe spot from people and all of their faults; all of his faults. It was his only getaway that he had from his harsh reality that no one outside of this house knew about. They knew nothing about it, and that was how it would always stay.

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><p>Kiku sighed in relief as he left the school doors. It was finally Friday, which gave him the chance to relax at home. An uneventful weekend was planned full of studying, reading, and maybe a little bit of video game playing. Alfred had walked out of the school with the Japanese teen. "Hey dude! You're staying over tonight still right?" The American yelled happily at Kiku.<p>

"Of course Alfred-kun!" Kiku replied with a small smile. Oh crap. He had forgotten all about promising Alfred to stay over. With all that had just happened with Arthur, Kiku had lost his train of thought.

"Great!" Alfred exclaimed in that over-enthusiastic voice he happened to have. "We can go now! To the Hero's Lair!" He finished, grabbing Kiku by the arm and starting to drag the shorter teen towards the Senior parking lot. Kiku could tell that this would be a long night with his best friend...

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><p>As they rode down the road, Alfred babbled on and on about little things like the video game he'd been playing or the new Spider-Man movie that was coming out. But it was at this point that Kiku remembered that he didn't have any clothes or anything prepared to stay over at his friend's house. To retrieve his belongings, Kiku would have to do one of the most impossible things in the history of the universe: interrupt Alfred.<p>

"Alfred-kun-" Kiku began, only to overruled by a string of words and sentences of nonstop talking from the American. "Alfred!" Kiku said a little louder, still to no avail.

But then Kiku had a brilliant idea that he knew would stop the American's long conversation with himself.

"Alfred. New Years party, last year, on the roof." Kiku said in a monotone and nonchalant way. Alfred stopped mid-sentence and slammed on the brakes, causing the person in the car behind him to swerve into the other lane, flipping him the bird the whole way past. Alfred's face had turned to a dark shade of red and he was gripping the steering wheel. Quickly realizing that this could hurt his ego, the American began driving as he was before.

"D-dude, why would you bring that up...?" Alfred asked Kiku, his face still red from embarrassment.

Kiku gave a small smile at his triumph and asked politely, "Alfred do you mind dropping by my apartment really quickly?"

Alfred turned his head away from the road to look at the other teen. "You brought THAT up, just so I could drive by your house? DUDE YOU ONLY HAD TO ASK!"

Kiku quietly apologized and thanked the American. As they pulled up to Kiku's apartment building, Alfred turned to Kiku again and asked "Hey bro, is it alright if I come inside for a sec?"

"Of course Alfred-kun!" Kiku replied to the question. Why wouldn't he let his best friend come inside his home? He's been in there a million times before. However, Alfred always asked and Kiku figured it was just to be polite.

They took the elevator up to Kiku's floor and got off to go to Kiku's apartment. As soon as they got inside the small living area, Alfred made a dash for the restroom. Seeing this made Kiku give a small chuckle; Alfred really did act funny sometimes.

It didn't look like Yao was home though. 'He must be working still...' Kiku thought to himself. He hadn't told his older brother about staying over at Alfred's house but he figured that Yao wouldn't mind his overnight stay. He'd probably be working late anyway.

Kiku quickly put his bookbag away in his room and found a small duffle bag to store his belongings. It didn't take him very long, and when Kiku came back Alfred was examining one of Yao's many Hello Kitty collectibles. Seeing the Japanese teen come into the room, the blonde commented, "Dude, you should totally get rid of some of these. It's like a little girl lives here. They're really freaky in the bathroom; felt like they were watching me the whole time I was pissing."

Kiku rolled his eyes as he only could with Alfred. "They're my brother's. If I could get rid of them, believe me when I say, I would..." The shorter teen sighed, "My brother really needs to grow up and become a proper young man."

There was a short silence as they stood in the room that was adorned with Hello Kitty merchandise.

"Ready to go?" Alfred asked, breaking the silence as he jingled his keys.

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><p>"Dude you aren't very good at Mario Kart." Alfred said as he raced with one hand and took a bite out of a pizza with the other.<p>

"I-It's because I've never played it before! That's all. If I were to get practice, I'm sure that I'd be much better." Kiku rebutted to the American's comment.

As soon as Alfred won the tenth race, he turned his Wii off. They had already ordered pizza, played many different video games, played a board game, and watched YouTube videos. The worst part about this was that it was only 8:30. "Ugh, man I'm so bored!" Alfred yelled out, turning upside down on his sofa.

"Well, we can always try cooking something." Kiku always found cooking to be a relaxing and fun hobby, so he always made sure to bring it up if given the chance.

"Nah, that's for pussies. We're tough guys! We should do something totally risky and cool!"

Kiku had a few ideas, however knowing Alfred, the wouldn't be "cool", "risky" or "heroic" enough. The blonde, still hanging upside down and now also eating pizza (which Kiku had never seen anyone do before) suddenly sat up, his blue eyes shining with excitement.

"I've got the perfect idea! Nufufufufu~"

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><p>Arthur had heard his mother and brother leave about an hour ago, and last time he checked, his father was asleep on the foyer couch.<p>

As soon as the front door of the glorious house had been closed, Arthur was able to breathe a sigh of relief. That woman and her wretched child that he called his relatives were absolute pains in the arse for the English teen. He couldn't help but to hate them.

They never let him do what he wanted. Arthur had been holed up in this house for as long as he could remember. In fact, the only outside exposure that he received was going to school.

Still sitting in his room, the Briton fell onto his bed, his white and orange cat following him and laying down right beside him. As the silence of the room engulfed him, Arthur thought of that cold, bitch of a mother and the screwed up family that he had.

His mother had long and perfect blonde hair with gorgeous blue eyes. Christine had a smile that could light a dark highway at midnight and her beauty was second to none. Her voice oozed a sweet honey-like feeling when she spoke to you, as if you were the most important person in the world. In other words: a typical trophy wife.

Arthur's father however, was a busy man with light brown hair and eyes to match. He was rather short and a bit chubby and his glasses made his image complete. Charles was the CEO of a huge company and was loaded with cash. He went on many business trips and was rarely ever home, but when he was home, he was usually on the couch asleep.

But Arthur's least favorite family member was Peter, his twelve year old brother. The little monster did whatever he could to try to get Arthur in trouble or to do something that made the elder of the two look or feel bad. Peter looked like he belonged in this family; Arthur however did not appear the same way.

Arthur's emerald green eyes and huge eyebrows made him stand out in his family. No one on either side had green eyes or those cattepillar eyebrows. He had always wondered if this is why they treated him so terribly...

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><p>"Are you sure about this Alfred-kun?" Kiku asked as they stood in front of a line of beautiful, luxurious, and spacious mansions.<p>

Alfred cackled as they continued walking away from his car. "Am I sure? OF COURSE I'M SURE! When is the hero NOT sure!"

Kiku looked a little unsettled, "If you say so..."

Not being able to tell that Kiku was nervous, Alfred continued marching down the road, talking about his master plan for the stunt that was about to be pulled. "Okay Kiku," The American began, "You pick the first house."

Kiku observed the different houses to look and see which one appeared to have the person who would get least angry at them if they were to get caught. "What about...that one?" Kiku asked while pointing to a house towards the end of the street on a rather steep hill.

"Looks great! Let's gooooo!" Alfred hollered after grabbing the shorter teen and pulling him down the road.

"Alfred-kun! Please... keep your voice... down, if we are trying... to be sneaky!" The Japanese teen told the American between pants as he was dragged into running.

As they approached the front door of the house, Alfred seemed to radiate as his excitement grew. "Dude this is so exciting. Like one of those movies, y'know?"

The blonde's excitement was only making Kiku even more nervous and upset, like he was about to be sick. Alfred would be the first to go since Kiku had picked the house. Taking a deep breathe, Alfred raised his finger to the doorbell and said "Ding dong..." and as soon as the bell was rung, he shouted at the top of his lungs "DIIIIIIIITTTCCCCCH!" The American quickly dodged into the bushes, once again dragging poor Kiku with him.

As soon as the two had hidden behind a couple of bushes in front of the house, a tall young woman with short red hair and an intense expression. The woman called out a couple of "Hello"s, only to curse under her breath about the whipper snappers and close the door.

Alfred was obviously amused by the childish prank. "BAHAHAHAHA! OH GOD, DID YOU SEE HER FACE? THAT WAS FREAKIN' HILARIOUS YO!"

Kiku on the other hand, was not. "Alfred-san? What was the meaning of that?"

Alfred slowly ceased his laughter, tears starting to come to the corners of his eyes from laughing so hard. "Uhm..." He began, "I guess it's kinda funny to watch the people? I don't really know, but it really is fun!"

Kiku only nodded in response, not seeing the "fun" in this game. "My turn to pick! I piiiiiick...THAT HOUSE!" Alfred said pointing at a house directly across the street with a long driveway and brand new Aston Martin out front.

It was the same ritual as before except for this time, Alfred pushed Kiku to ring the door. "You have to do it since I did it last time!" The blonde whisper-shouted. Alfred was such a child sometimes...

The Japanese teen looked timidly at his hands, and slowly raised one of them to ring the round button. "I'm not sure about this Alfred-san..." He said in an unsure voice.

"You'll be fine, man!" Alfred said, encouraging the elder of the two, "Don't be a chicken!"

Closing his eyes, Kiku slowly inhaled and whispered to himself, "Ding dong..." He rang the doorbell. "DIIIIIIIIITCH!" The American shouted as he ran away. Kiku, slightly surprised that he'd even done it, realized he had to get out of there. He started to run, only to get his jacket caught on a bush near the door.

'Oh no...Oh I knew this was a foolish game! Why now? Why me?' Kiku mentally asked. However, the bush had thorns and was not going to release his blue hoodie anytime soon.

"A-Alfred-san!" Kiku cried out to the blonde, who hadn't yet noticed his companion was missing. Kiku called out one more time, this time Alfred hearing him and turning around.

"Dude what are you still doing up there?" He had already run to the other side of the house, a safe distance from the door.

"I'm stuck!"

The American finally realized his friend's situation and yelled out, "NEVER FEAR! THE HEROOOOO IS HEEEREEEE!"

But by the time that Alfred had gotten to Kiku and began to get him off of the bush, it was too late.

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><p>The blonde opened the door to see two teens about his age. One had their coat stuck on a bush and the other was trying to get the hoodie pried from the thorns. These two seemed awfully familiar...And then it hit him.<p>

"Kiku?" Arthur asked, puzzled as to why he was here...and even more puzzled as to why his jacket was caught on the bush. "Wh-what're you doing here?" the Briton asked nervously.

Kiku had to think of an excuse fast. "Uhm...I was...just in the neighborhood...and wanted to say hello..."

"You shouldn't just drop by...please give me a warning..." Arthur turned around to look at something, "Before coming by."

The Japanese teen hadn't noticed the look of hate and disgust on his friend's usually smiling face. "We were playing Ding Dong, Ditch. If you have a problem, I'd _gladly_ love to hear it, ya bastard." Alfred spat sarcastically. Kiku was shocked by his friend's sudden mood change.

"A-Alfred...please be more polite..." He quietly asked.

"I'll be what I want to be!" He hissed at Kiku who'd never seen him behave this way before. Alfred unzipped the jacket and yanked it from the bush. "Let's go Kiku..." He said as he walked away from the house.

The dark-haired teen gave Arthur an apologetic look before walking away, and Arthur closing the door on them.

Still rather shocked, Kiku asked, "What's wrong with you? He did absolutely nothing to deserve that!"

"...Let's just get in the car..."

* * *

><p>"Who the fuck was at the door this time a' night?" Arthur's father slurred in a sloppy and loud way.<p>

Arthur closed the door and responded, "No one. Just somebody trying to sell something."

"Where the bloody hell is that maid? Why hasn't she made my dinner yet?"

"The maid's off today, Charles...Christine made you a dinner remember?"

"Don't you be disrespectful to me, boy! Mind me and I don't want to hear your sass!"

Arthur then heard the middle-aged man mumble something about "lyin' to me", but sure enough, he fell right back to sleep, and once again, Arthur went back to his retreat.

* * *

><p>The car ride was dead silent. Alfred intensely stared at the road as he drove, and Kiku stared at his own hands. The latter had never seen the blonde this quiet before in the six years that he'd known him. He wanted to know why the usually good-natured teen had just suddenly changed personalities. Alfred had never before talked about Arthur... In fact he didn't even remember-<p>

"Are you friends with _him_?" Alfred said, breaking Kiku's thoughts and gesturing his head toward the way that they had come.

"I wouldn't say that we were _friends..._acquaintances maybe?" He answered indirectly.

"...I wouldn't recommend it...He's bad news Kiku. If I were you, I'd try my god damn hardest to stay away from him."

Kiku only nodded, as there was an awkward pause.

"...Hey, dude! Wanna play Mario Kart when we get back to my place? I can get my mom to make cookies, and maybe you'll even beat me one time! On one like...Peach Beach or something! One of the easy ones!"

Once again surprised by the mood change, Kiku only paused and after a few seconds laughed. "Of course Alfred-kun. Of course."

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><p><strong>AN: And that's chapter 3~ Thanks so much for reading and I hoped you liked it! Sorry it took so long, I've been so busy... :(**

**Thanks SO much to my friend roll-like-a-buffalo who talked to me and let me run through my story with her! o3o**

**Also, I have a couple of small announcements that would mean so much if you helped me out with either of them:**

**First, my friend started a Gakuen Hetalia RP and we're currently looking for people to roleplay with. The link to it is z13 . /Hetalia_Academy_RP/index . php? (there are spaces in between the periods in the url) if you have questions, please feel free to PM me~ ^^**

**Second, I'm currently looking for a Beta Reader to read through my story/stories (depending on interests) I may be looking for more than one, so if you think that you could help me or know someone who could, help would be greatly appreciated! **

**Once again, thank you so much for reading and please review! :D**


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